MacRumors

NBC Universal's Peacock streaming service launched nationally today, adding another competitor to the crowded streaming market that already includes Apple TV+, Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max, and Hulu.

The service, which became available to some Comcast subscribers in April, is now available on iOS and Apple TV, and operates a free tier and a premium tier.

The free tier includes 13,000 hours of programming, while the premium tier costs $4.99 a month and features over 20,000 hours of TV, movies, news, sports and other content produced by NBC Television, NBC News, and Universal.

Both tiers include commercials, but the premium tier runs fewer ads and offers access to new original content, such as the dystopian drama "Brave New World," as well as access to shows the day after they're broadcast on TV. Peacock also offers an ad-free "premium plus" tier that costs $9.99 a month.

The service features NBC shows such as "30 Rock," "Cheers," "Downton Abbey," and "Saturday Night Live," with live sporting events to include four exclusive English Premier League matches on July 15 as well as coverage of the U.S. Open Championship.

Like HBO Max, Peacock is not available on Amazon Fire TV or Roku. According to CNBC, NBCUniversal does not want want Peacock to be included in Amazon Channels, where Amazon would take a cut of new subscriptions and would be the one collecting credit card information and other user data.

As for Roku, NBC Universal was reportedly unable to agree on how much of Peacock's ad inventory the smart TV platform can sell.

That's left the ‌Apple TV‌ set-top box as the main beneficiary, as it gets to add yet another name to its exclusive list of supported streaming services.

Last year in iOS 13, Apple introduced new hearing features in the Health app that are designed to help users avoid being exposed to high levels of sound when wearing headphones for an extended period of time. In iOS 14, Apple is advancing its hearing features by adding the ability to measure the volume level of what you're listening to in real time.

With the new feature, Apple is putting more emphasis on the health dangers of being exposed to high volume audio. Listening to something at 80 decibels (dB) for more than 40 hours in a one-week period increases your risk of hearing loss. Raise it 10 dB to 90, and damage can begin after only four hours a week. Turn it up over 100 dB, and listening for just a few minutes a week can cause damage.

With the new headphone measuring feature, you can check that what you're listening to is being played at an acceptable level for your ears. It's easy to set up and use once you know where it is. The following steps show you how it's done on an ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ running iOS 14.

How to Set Up the Headphone Level Checker in iOS 14

1. Launch the Settings app on your ‌‌iPhone‌‌ or ‌‌iPad‌‌.
   

2. Tap Control Center.
3. Scroll down and tap the green plus (+) button next to Hearing.
   

How to Use the Headphone Level Checker in iOS 14

The next time you're listening to something on your iOS device over connected headphones, follow these steps.

1. Launch Control Center: On an ‌‌iPad‌‌ with a Home button, double-tap the Home button; on ‌‌iPhone‌‌ 8 or earlier, swipe up from the bottom of the screen; and on a 2018 iPad Pro or ‌‌iPhone‌‌ X and later, swipe down from the upper right of the screen.
2. Look at the Hearing button in Control Center. If it has a green tick, you're listening at a healthy volume level. If what you're listening to exceeds the 80-decibel level, the measurement icon will display a yellow exclamation mark, warning you that the volume is too high.
   
   

3. For a more detailed picture of the current decibel level, tap the Hearing button.
   

• How to Use Apple's Live Listen Feature With AirPods

The real-time headphone level feature works well with most headphones, but bear in mind that Apple says the measurement is more accurate with AirPods and other Apple-certified headsets.

Apps created for Macs don't typically receive as much coverage as apps designed for iPhones and iPads, so we crated a series here at MacRumors to highlight interesting Mac apps worth checking out. This month's apps focus on productivity and feature great tools for working from home.

• Twobird (Free) - Twobird is an email app from the makers of Notability that's designed to integrate with Gmail accounts, adding tools for creating notes, setting reminders, and collaborating with others on notes and tasks. Twobird is basically an all-in-one app that merges list making, note taking, email management, and more, and it's worth checking out for those who like multi-function apps.
• Rectangle (Free) - Rectangle is an app for moving and resizing macOS windows using keyboard shortcuts and snap to align functionality. It's a free, lightweight app that's ideal for managing multiple windows on your Mac.
• Silicio (Free) - Silicio adds a mini player with album art and a Today Center widget for controlling music that's playing on the Mac. It works with iTunes, the Apple Music app, Spotify, and more, providing customizable themes, sizes, and shortcuts along with Touch Bar integration.
• Bumpr ($2.99) - Bumpr is a simple Mac app that's designed to choose where to open links when you click them. If, for example, you click on a web link, Bumpr pops up a menu displaying all of your installed browsers so you can choose where to open the link. The same is true for mail apps, which makes this a solid option for those who use multiple mail and browser apps.
• SideNotes - ($19.99) SideNotes is a note taking app that's hidden at the side of your Mac's display by default, but pops out when you need it for jotting down quick notes. The app keeps notes readily available on your desktop, but hidden away when not needed so there's not another open app taking up space. SideNotes can be accessed with a keyboard shortcut or a swipe gesture, and when opened up, will stay on top of other windows. It supports folders, lists, formatting, and more.

Know of a must-have Mac app or game that we haven't highlighted yet? Let us know in the comments below and we might feature it in a future video. For more of our Mac app picks, check out our essential Mac apps archive.

The Los Angeles Metro today confirmed that TAP cards used for public transit in the city will work with Apple Pay later this year, allowing them to be added to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch for quick access to buses and trains in LA.

The LA Metro said last year that it was working with Apple to add mobile payment support for iPhones by the end of 2019, but the rollout didn't end up happening and work on the transition continues. In a tweet today, the LA Metro said that ‌iPhone‌ and Apple Watch support for TAP cards will be coming sometime in 2020.

Los Angeles has been working to overhaul its TAP system, introducing upgraded fare boxes with real-time data about fares purchased online and developing a new TAP mobile app that allows for payments and TAP account management.

As with other transit systems around the world that support ‌Apple Pay‌, the ‌Apple Pay‌ integration in Los Angeles will allow commuters to hold a compatible ‌iPhone‌ or Apple Watch near a TAP card reader to pay transit fares. TAP works with 25 transit systems across LA county.

Apple maintains a list of all of the cities that offer ‌Apple Pay‌ support for their transit systems, including Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, London, New York City, Portland, and more.

Apple's upcoming iPhone 12 models could ship with a new Lightning to USB-C cable that includes a braided fabric design, according to leaked photos from ChargerLAB that surfaced on Weibo today (via Twitter users DuanRui and L0vetodream).

The photos depict a USB-C to Lightning cable that has a braided design rather than the standard non-fabric design of the current cables. Apple has never released a cable with a braided design for its iPhones or iPads, but it does offer a braided Thunderbolt Pro cable, a black braided Lightning cable that ships with the Mac Pro, and a braided power cable for the HomePod.

Braided cable designs have the potential to be more durable than standard rubber-coated cables, but typically extra reinforcement is included at the end points where the cable heads are positioned, which isn't seen here. The cables look similar to existing Apple-designed Lightning to USB-C cables with the exception of the new gray and white braided look.

ChargerLAB, where the leak originated, has shared accurate information on Apple's cable plans in the past and says that the cable depicted here may come standard with Apple's ‌iPhone‌ 12 lineup. Apple in 2019 included a USB-C to Lightning cable with the higher-end Pro ‌iPhone‌ models to go along with a USB-C power adapter, while the more affordable ‌iPhone‌ 11 came with a standard USB-A to Lightning cable.

ChargerLAB's testing confirms that the cable appears to feature an original Apple-certified Made for ‌iPhone‌ design, and the cable measures in at 1.05 meters, close to the length of Apple's current 1-meter cables. When it comes to thickness, the cable measures in at 3.04mm, which is just a bit thicker than Apple's existing USB-C to Lightning cable.

Use the POWER-Z MF001 MFi tester to read the internal information of the Lightning terminal. From the screen, you can see that the wire ASIC and PMU are original, the terminal model is C94, and the score reaches 100 points. It is an Apple MFi certified original terminal.

Apple's USB-C to Lightning cables are used to enable fast charging in compatible iPhones, providing a 50 percent charge within 30 minutes. The cable was able to fast charge an ‌iPhone‌ and an iPad according to ChargerLAB.

What is the charging performance of the wire? The editor uses an Apple 96W PD charger to charge the iPhone 11 Pro Max with a power of 8.98V 2.52A 22.68W, which reaches the maximum power of the iPhone 11 Pro Max.

In addition to providing fast PD charging for the iPhone, the iPad is also okay. The test charging power for the iPad Air3 reached 15.02V 2.17A 32.72W, which reached the maximum power of the iPad Air3.

Along with a braided design, the new cables appear to feature 8 silver contacts with rhodium-plated ruthenium, which is more resistant to corrosion, and combined with the braided design, these cables are likely to be able to better withstand damage after prolonged use. A more durable design will be a welcome change for ‌iPhone‌ users as there have been many complaints over the years about the weak design of Apple's cables.

Apple's new braided USB-C to Lightning cable may be the only accessory that ships with its 2020 iPhones. Multiple rumors have suggested the ‌iPhone‌ 12 models will not come with a power adapter or EarPods in the box, allowing Apple to save money and cut down on packaging.

Instead, Apple may sell a new 20W power adapter on a standalone basis, allowing customers to purchase a power adapter separately from Apple or from a third-party manufacturer.

App Store developers in the European Union now have more protections afforded to them following the passage of new regulations this week, according to MCV/Develop and GamesIndustry.biz.

As noted by developer Steven Troughton-Smith, one of the new requirements is that operators of app distribution platforms like Apple provide developers with a minimum of 30 days notice before removing their apps from the ‌App Store‌, with exceptions for illicit or inappropriate content, safety concerns, counterfeiting, fraud, malware, spam, and apps that have suffered a data breach.

Other protections for developers include transparency on how ranking charts and "trending" lists are generated, mandatory disclosures by platform operators about preferential treatment being given to any specific developers or publishers, and access to third-party mediation for any disputes that can not be resolved through the normal app review process.

Apple has been under increasing scrutiny for its ‌App Store‌ practices, with the EU currently exploring antitrust issues related to the platform. The company also recently found itself embroiled in controversy over its rejection of apps for new premium email service Hey for not including an in-app subscription option.

Apple has taken a few steps to address app review concerns in recent weeks, allowing developers to challenge not only decisions about whether an app is in violation of Apple's review guidelines but also the guidelines themselves. Apple will also no longer delay bug fix updates for most guideline issues, allowing those updates to be delivered to users while any guideline issues can be addressed in a subsequent update.

The White House's American Workforce Policy Advisory Board, the Ad Council, Apple, and others have partnered on a new "Find Something New" website that highlights the various paths towards a career beyond a four-year college degree, including apprenticeships, certification courses, online learning, an associate's degree, trades training, and more.

"Now more than ever, we need to ensure that everyone has the tools they need to succeed and seize new opportunities," said Apple CEO Tim Cook. "To invest in our future, we have to invest in people, in education and the many paths to a well-paying job or starting a new business. This initiative is about empowering people across the nation to discover a more hopeful future for themselves and their families."

Cook, who co-chaired the group responsible for this campaign, has previously said that "I don't think a four year degree is necessary to be proficient at coding." Instead, he believes that coding should be taught to students starting at a young age.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Our newest partnership with Anker has kicked off this week, allowing MacRumors readers to save up to 30 percent on Anker's wall chargers, USB-C hubs, portable chargers, and wireless chargers on Amazon. Like our previous exclusive sales, you'll need to enter the relevant promo codes for each device in order to see the discounts.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Sales include a collection of useful Anker accessories, like the company's combination wall charger and 5,000 mAh power bank at $29.99, down from $39.99. If you're looking for a way to upgrade your MacBook workflow, Anker's 7-in-1 USB-C hub at $26.99, down from $35.99, is a solid addition to any home office workspace.

Wall Chargers

• PowerPort Atom III Slim - $19.99 with code MRANKER45, down from $25.99
• PowerStrip Pad - $26.99 with code MRANKER67, down from $35.99
• PowerPort III Pod - $29.99 with code MRANKPOD, down from $39.99

Hubs

• PowerExpand+ 7-in-1 USB-C Hub - $26.99 with code MRANKER346, down from $35.99
• PowerPort 5-in-1 USB-C Hub - $59.99 with code MRPOWERH, down from $75.99

Portable Chargers

• PowerCore Wireless 10,000 mAh - $26.99 with code MRANKER65, down from $35.99
• PowerCore Fusion 5,000 mAh Combo Wall Charger - $29.99 with code MRANKER24, down from $39.99
• PowerCore Slim 10,000 mAh - $32.99 with code MRANKER31, down from $43.99

Wireless Chargers

• PowerWave Sense Pad Alloy - $27.99 with code MRANKER09, down from $35.99
• PowerWave 10 Stand - $30.99 with code MRANKER73, down from $44.99

Head to our full Deals Roundup to get caught up with all of the latest deals and discounts that we've been tracking over the past week.

Apple could be working towards the release of a new app for Windows 10, according to a report this week from an Italian website.

The blog Aggiornamenti Lumia suggests that an app from Apple is "coming soon" to the Microsoft Store, but stops short of providing additional details.

Apple still maintains a Windows version of the iTunes app, which has been discontinued on Mac and replaced by several standalone apps that split Apple's streaming services and content libraries into more manageable portals: Music, TV, Books, and Podcasts.

iTunes is currently the only native way to access Apple Music on Windows, and there is no Apple TV+ app. PC users wanting to stream ‌Apple TV‌+ content must do so via Apple's website, so the natural assumption is that the rumored new Apple app could include a native portal for ‌Apple TV‌+ and ‌Apple Music‌.

Last year, a LinkedIn job listing revealed that Apple was looking to hire engineers with Universal Windows Platform (UWP) experience to work on the "next generation" of media apps for Windows.

UWP apps can run on Windows PCs, Xbox One, and HoloLens, and could conceivably give Apple additional avenues to push its streaming services.

Popular writing app Ulysses received its twentieth major update today, and gained new grammar and style checking tools as well as a redesigned dashboard.

The grammar and style check is an integration of the LanguageTool Plus service, and can analyze texts and provide informed suggestions in categories such as capitalization, punctuation, semantics, redundancy, typography, and style.

"The challenge was to integrate the text check in a way that feels both natural and easy to use," said Ulysses creative head, Marcus Fehn. "It was also critical for us that the users perceive all results as suggestions rather than corrections. Because what is a mistake? When it comes to writing style, that's up to the author."

Users can review the checker's grammar and style suggestions at once or per category, and apply or ignore them. The grammar and style check is available in over 20 languages, and for now it's available for Ulysses for Mac. The developers plan to add the feature to the app's iPad and iPhone version in another release this fall.

Also new in this update is a redesigned dashboard, which offers convenient access to the new grammar and style check while consolidating many existing functions into a more organized overview.

The new dashboard contains an outline navigator where all headlines are displayed in a hierarchical order, allowing users to get an overview of their text's structure, and jump quickly between its various parts. Elsewhere, additional navigator sections list embedded images, videos, links, footnotes, annotations, and marked text passages.

Various views gather available information with a certain focus, such as all statistics, all comments and notes, all media items, and so on. The dashboard is also configurable, so writers can display only the information they need. A more compact version of the new dashboard is also available on ‌iPhone‌ and ‌iPad‌ that allows users to check their text's statistics, add keywords, and attach notes or images.

Ulysses can be downloaded for free on the App Store and the Mac App Store, with version 20 rolling out to existing users today. After a 14-day trial period, a subscription is required to unlock the app on all devices. A monthly subscription costs $5.99, while a yearly subscription is $49.99.

Students can use Ulysses at a discounted price of $11.99 per six months. The discount is granted from within the app. Ulysses is also included in Setapp, the subscription-based service for Mac applications created by MacPaw.

iOS 14 brings Picture in Picture mode to the iPhone, allowing movies, TV shows, and videos to be watched in a small window while you do other things on your ‌iPhone‌.

Picture in Picture Mode won't be compatible with the YouTube app until YouTube updates it with support, but for now, you can watch YouTube videos in Picture in Picture Mode through Safari.

Activating Picture in Picture Mode

1. Open Safari.
2. Navigate to the YouTube website.
3. Find a video that you want to watch.
4. Tap on the square icon at the bottom to put the YouTube media player in full screen mode.
5. Tap on the video to display the controls.
6. Tap on the Picture in Picture icon that looks like a larger screen with an arrow going to a smaller screen. Alternatively, double tap with two fingers on the screen or swipe upwards from the bottom of the ‌iPhone‌ to activate Picture in Picture.
7. To continue browsing Safari while watching your video, just open another Safari tab, or swipe to get to the Home Screen to open another app.

Once Picture in Picture mode is activated, you can swipe out of Safari to do other things on your ‌iPhone‌. You can move Picture in Picture windows anywhere on the display and double tap to change the size to small, medium, or large. If you need to use your ‌iPhone‌'s full display but still want to hear the video, you can even drag the Picture in Picture window all the way off the screen.

Exiting Picture in Picture Mode

1. Tap anywhere on the video to bring up the video controls.
2. Tap on the Picture in Picture icon in the upper right side of the window. You can also double tap on the video with two fingers.
3. Alternatively, if you're done watching the video, tap on the "X" to close it entirely.

For more on how Picture in Picture mode works with apps, the web, and FaceTime, make sure to check out our Picture in Picture guide.

SoftBank, the company that owns chip designer Arm Holdings, is exploring options that include a full or partial sale or a public offering, reports The Wall Street Journal.

SoftBank is working with Goldman Sachs Group as an advisor, and the explorations are at an early stage. The Wall Street Journal says that it's unknown how much interest there would be in Arm from financial or industry players, so there's a chance that SoftBank will ultimately do nothing.

Apple has licensed technology from Arm Holdings for its A-series chips used in iPhones since 2006, and Apple is planning to expand the use of Arm-based chips to Macs, with the upcoming launch of Macs equipped with Apple Silicon.

A potential sale would not likely impact Apple, nor is it known if Apple would be interested in a partial or full purchase of Arm Holdings.

In every version of iOS, Apple adds new Accessibility features and improves others, and iOS 14 is no exception. The Magnifier tool, designed by those with visual issues who need assistance, has new capabilities in iOS 14.

Updated Interface

The app features an updated interface that makes controls more readily available and offers clarity on what each tool does. There are options for adjusting brightness and contrast, or adding a filter to change what's being magnified to a color that's easier for an individual to see.

All of the controls can be rearranged to best meet a user's needs, and the filter options can be customized so you can set the one that you need and toggle it on with a tap.

In a dark area, the flashlight can be toggled on with a tap, and the magnification level can be easily controlled with a slider bar. Many of these features were available in the prior version of the app, but multi-shot, an option for capturing more than one photo at once, is new.

Multi-Shot

With a new multi-shot option, Magnifier users can take multiple photos at one time, capturing something like different pages of a menu, and then review them all at once, rather than having to take single shots that need to be reviewed one by one.

Adding Magnifier to Home Screen

For frequent Magnifier users, an app icon to activate the Magnifier function can be added to the Home Screen by accessing the App Library, searching for Magnifier, and then dragging it over to one of the app pages or long pressing and choosing "Add to ‌Home Screen‌." The feature can continue to be accessed with a triple tap on the side button as well.

To find Magnifier in App Library, make sure it's turned on by opening up Settings, tapping on Accessibility, choosing Magnifier, and then toggling it to the on position.

More Accessibility Info

The changes to the Magnifier app are small but significant, making the app customizable for each user and streamlining the use process. Apple also added several useful new Accessibility features to iOS 14, such as Back Tap for manually activating some iPhone features and Sound Recognition for recognizing sounds like water running, sirens, alarms, and more. Additional detail on the new Accessibility features can be found in our iOS 14 roundup.

With coronavirus outbreaks across the United States continuing to spike, Apple is finding new roles for retail staff as it closes more of its store locations and is no longer expecting corporate employees to fully return to on-campus work in the U.S. in 2020, according to Bloomberg.

Apple has been forced to re-close many retail locations in the United States that had previously reopened, with stores in California, North Carolina, Florida, and more shuttered at the current time. In these locations, Apple is asking retail employees to work remotely in work from home support roles that the company has been offering since March.

Retail employees are able to serve as support advisors to handle online service requests and questions from customers unable to receive services in store. Apple has not made working from home in this way mandatory for retail employees and has continued to pay employee wages, but the company is now pushing retail employees unable to return to stores to participate in the work from home program as the need for customer support representatives has grown, leading to long wait times for service.

"If your store is closed, please sign up for Retail at Home, please talk to your manager, because we really need to make sure that we shift our teams to greet our customers remotely in this time," O'Brien told staff in the video. "We may need to be working remotely for some period of time."

"This is not the experience that we want to have for our customers," O'Brien added. "So we really want to make sure that we are moving to where our customers are, to help them during this very challenging time. As you know people are really dependent upon their devices, especially right now."

For retail employees who are able to return to work, Apple is requiring masks. Apple is providing name tag lanyards that can be customized with Memoji to help retail staff be more recognizable with masks on.

Along with encouraging retail employees to work from home, Apple has also made adjustments to its corporate plans. Apple told employees in a memo that it does not expect all of its U.S. office workers to be able to return to their jobs on site before the end of the year.

Apple's offices in Europe and Asia, however, are expected to return to normal in the coming months with all employees returning to their jobs.

Some employees began returning to Apple's Silicon Valley campuses in May. Employees who have come back to work are offered optional coronavirus testing, with Apple also shipping test kits to both its retail and corporate staff at home.

Apple is limiting the number of employees allowed in buildings and specific work areas, plus it is requiring masks and conducting temperature checks.